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Truck Accidents in Northern Virginia

Every U.S. driver knows our roads are loaded with mammoth trucks that occupy the entire lane. These trucks might be called tractor-trailers, 18-wheelers, or semis. Though the truck drivers are experienced, they can sometimes make mistakes leading to serious accidents. 

Truck accident lawsuits are hard-fought and complex. Driver error is the most common cause of large truck crashes. Other factors may include the weather, road conditions, and vehicle performance. If you’ve been involved in a truck accident, contact us today for expert guidance. 

When we investigate your truck accident, we may request data from the CSA Program, which was designed by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety (FMCS) Administration to identify potentially high-risk trucking companies. 

Trucking companies get a rating based on a number of factors and these points may also relate to your truck accident:

  • Safety of the driver
  • Driver fatigue
  • Driver fitness
  • Use of drugs or alcohol
  • Vehicle maintenance
  • Cargo problems
  • Number of reported crashes

Why People Turn to Brien Roche for Counsel


Detailed Plan for Investigating Truck Drivers and Companies


Thorough Understanding of Trucking Regulations


40+ Years of Courtroom and Tort Experience


Honest Legal Advice About the Merits of Your Case


No Recovery in Your Case, No Attorney's Fees Due


Tough Representation to Receive the Damages You Deserve

Results of Significant Brien Roche Law Accident Cases

Case Description Amount
Brain injury to pedestrian. $2,100,000
Loss of forearm in vehicle rollover. $1,250,000
Brain injury from auto accident. $600,000
Accident involving local police officer. $600,000
Settlement with trucking company. $450,000

★★★★★

“Mr. Roche was professional and very attentive. He responded to all of my calls and emails, anytime I had any questions or concerns. He is truly the best! I highly recommended him!”

– Jane D.

FAQs About Truck Accidents

In any type of complex suit, (such as vehicle crashes involving a truck driver), you need counsel. You should hire a lawyer early to protect you and your interests. There are tough issues that may arise in these cases and an attorney can help you if the case is disputed.

You should hire counsel if your injuries from the accident with a truck are serious and/or it seems there may be long-term damage. But you may not need a lawyer if your case involves only minor injury to yourself and minimal property damage.

When a truck accident happens, the insurance carrier and its lawyers get on the case right away. But it may take time for you, the plaintiff, to hire a lawyer.

That time lapse is critical. The trucking company only needs to keep certain records for six months – and these records might deal with your truck accident.

For this reason, you should write to the trucking company as soon as possible and ask them to keep all records and data relating to your crash.

If your case is successful, you'll receive financial compensation known as damages.

The damages you may be awarded are based on a range of factors, including:

  • Your physical injury
  • How long the injury lasted
  • The permanency of that injury
  • Your medical expenses
  • Your loss of income
  • Intangible pain, suffering, anguish, and embarrassment you might have felt as a result of the truck accident

In Virginia, the statute of limitations for injury to a person is two years from the date of injury. In the District of Columbia and Maryland, there's a three-year statute of limitations.

Generally speaking, this means a lawsuit must be filed at the courthouse within that time frame. There are exceptions to the rules but If the statute has expired without the filing of a lawsuit, then your claim is forever barred.

These rules can get very complex so you should consult with an attorney as soon as possible after you have been involved in a pedestrian accident. The attorney can explain your legal rights and the statute of limitations. You can then make a decision about what you want to do next.

In most truck accident cases, a personal injury lawyer represents you, the plaintiff, for a contingency fee. A contingency fee is a legal fee that's dependent on the outcome of the case.

The fee is often one-third of the gross recovery in damages. So if the gross recovery is $100,000, then the attorney's fee is $30,000.

If there's no recovery in the case, then there is no attorney's fee due. This system of contingent fees allows people who could not otherwise afford counsel to hire a lawyer. If people couldn't afford a lawyer, many valid claims wouldn't be pursued.

Note: The attorney may be required under the rules of the State Bar to hold the plaintiff responsible for costs. Most State Bars require that the personal injury lawyer tells the plaintiffs they may be responsible for the cost of litigation. Those costs include the cost of filing a suit, the cost of expert, and other costs.

Depending on the vehicle, there might not be any difference between these terms. Large trucks go by several names, including:
  • 18-wheelers
  • Tractor trailers
  • Semi-trailers
  • Semi-trucks
  • Semis
  • Big rigs
Monster trucks are twin-trailer trucks that are more than 100 feet long. They're much more likely to be involved in a truck accident than standard trucks because their size makes them unstable.
Trucks accidents (including fatal crashes involving commercial vehicles) may be due to one or more of the following:
  • Driver error
  • Driver fatigue (including that caused by sleep apnea) accounts for 13% of crashes. Most drivers are paid by the mile and any downtime for refueling, loading, and unloading doesn't count toward their paycheck. This means they may push on when they need to sleep.
  • Weather and road conditions
  • Vehicle performance, which could be related to a faulty inspection and/or improper maintenance.
  • The use of drugs. Substance use accounts for 26% of crashes, with over-the-counter drugs contributing to 18% of crashes.
  • Speed or traveling too fast – accounts for nearly 23%
  • Failing to use a turn signal or making some other illegal maneuver – accounts for about 9%
  • Aggressive driving – accounts for nearly 7%
  • Poor evasive action – accounts for nearly 7%
  • Being lost or driving in unfamiliar areas – accounts for nearly 22%
  • Failure to check blind spots and observe all sides of the truck before making a turn – accounts for 14%
  • Shifting or falling cargo
In addition, here are some basic road rules that may relate to your truck accident:
  • Drivers must approach every intersection assuming that cross traffic may not obey the signals.
  • Drivers must not start a left turn until there's enough time for the rear of their vehicle to clear the intersection, without forcing opposing drivers to slow down.
  • Drivers have a duty of extreme caution in bad weather – they must reduce their speed by a third.
Truck accident discovery is complex because trucks are complex vehicles. The relation between the company and the driver is also complex. Here's a list of everything we may look into from the point of view of both the truck driver and the trucking company:
  • Driver status, including whether they're an employee or independent contractor. We may also look at the number of truck occupants.
  • Licensing. The driver must have a current commercial driver's license (CDL) and a one-year medical certificate.
  • Equipment failure. Identify the nature of the failure, and identify any documents that would provide evidence.
  • Drug test results and data from the U.S. pre-employment screening program if applicable.
  • Systemic issues and failures. These may show up in data from the Compliance Safety Accountability (CSA) Program, which is designed to identify potentially high risk trucking companies.
  • The scene and the truck. We'll visit the scene with a trucking expert and/or reconstruction expert. We may need an investigator who can locate any witnesses not identified on the police report.
  • Logbooks or electronic on-board recorders.
  • Exams. Any pre-employment or employment medical exams called for under the U.S. regulations will report any medication that the driver is on.
  • Load. A driver isn't paid for loading time so we need to look at logs of the “in” and “out” times at dock facilities. In some cases, drivers misreport information about driving time to boost their pay.
  • Credit card receipts at gas stations show the date and time and place of purchase. But many fueling facilities have agreements with trucking companies not to show dates and times, so this info should be available from the credit card company.
  • Toll information. Some transponder companies don't record the date and time of passing tolls, so we would get this information from the entity that monitors the toll booths.
  • Driver's logs. Must be kept for a minimum of two years.
  • Insurance. Get copies of all of the policies of insurance.
  • Electronic data including the black box and information from: cell phones, texting devices, videos, freight tracking equipment, any satellite-based navigation or communication system, computer generated bills of lading or fuel receipts, and any electronic communication between driver and dispatcher.
  • Record of driver's prior collisions, violations, or traffic citations and the date, circumstances, and outcome of each.
  • History of driver's employment and training.
  • Communications between the driver and the trucking company.
  • Relationship with any of the other named Defendants to this action as of the date of this incident.
  • Owners. Identify precisely the owner of the tractor and the trailer involved, and describe in detail all signage on the tractor and trailer. Also, find out how many other trucks and employees the company has.
  • Safety policies. Identify in detail and by name any documents that constitute the trucking company's safety policy or policies. State in what format they exist, i.e. paper, electronic, or otherwise.
  • Driver discipline policies. Identify all policies concerning driver discipline for violation of any motor carrier safety regulations. State the name of any policy manual and what format these policies exist, i.e. paper, electronic, or otherwise.
  • Training practices. State in detail the trucking company's safety training practices for each driver. In addition, identify all training documents and the names of the individuals responsible for overseeing safety as of the date of the incident in question.
  • Driver’s compensation as of the date of this incident.

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McLean, VA 22102
4607 Newcomb Pl
Alexandria, VA 22304

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